15 Feb 1938, Alva, Okla.

Dear Bud,

Well son since the lord let us have some moisture and the Boss is feeling good, I get a day off (while it rains) and so I'll try and give out some information which may enlighten you as to just what and is going on in this one horse town with out a horse.

Well - as you have no doubt heard from Olson, I was right about what I said about the way I felt about that gal from the first time I saw her, if you remember what I said. Well anyway I've damn near given up the idea of going to school anymore and think maybe we'll get hitched some time in the next month or two, maybe after harvest. I've got to fix up some place to live. Think I can make more money at this deal than at anything else and a hell of a lot easier job of doing it with maybe a few days off a year with out some damn sick patients phoning the hell out of me, that is if I went on to Medical school.

I'm kinda like you are on this old business of getting around these high class babies and think that I could go out and nail me a money gal if I tried hard enough, cause I could get around with them alright. But on the other hand and this isn't for publication. Not even to the family. That gal is worth plenty of dough. She'll get approx. 250,000 bucks in the next 15 years and she owns 266 acres of wheat land now. So we won't starve to death. What I'm telling you here, I just found out this last week. And she didn't tell me that. I guess I could go damn near anywhere I want to go to school next year and have a new car and everything that goes with it but I don't think I'd better. What do you think?

Enough of that, Boy, Mom is sure looking forward to going to K.C. during your four day parole so show her a good time. She's got one coming.

I went down in Arkansas with John Platte last week after a load of pigs, we got 125, went clear to Texarkana. Started back at 8:00 Wed. nite. Drove all nite and all the next day and got in here at 9:00, Thursday nite. I drove all but about 5 hours. We had a fine time but were pretty decent boys at that.

Say, son, plan on getting back here after school is out and you and Mom have taken that trip over to Clarks - to work here during the month of June up until you have to take that trip. Because I'll have more that I can watch and so will mom. So, Bud, if you can see your way to do it I think you ought to, at least Mom is depending on it. We'll have to divide wheat and see about running the harvest on the ranch and also keep a plow running all the times. There will be something for you to do.

Boy I sure envy you an that darn trip. Guess I'll have to put mine off for a few years. Write me. Maybe we'll have another rain and I can answer it. Keep the contents of this one under your hat.

Gene

P.S. Alpha has her divorce and wants me to come down and run her drug store and balance her bed and I didn't say budget. So I don't guess I'll starve either way.